Involving Youth in Empowerment Evaluation: Evaluators' Perspectives

Abstract

Empowerment evaluation (EE) aims to teach program stakeholders, including benefi ciaries, how to conduct their own evaluations. Th is mixed methods research study examined how youth are involved in EE. Phase 1 surveyed evaluators to investigate the involvement of youth in EE of programs targeting youth. Phase 2 interviewed evaluators to explore what factor(s) evaluators perceive as facilitating or hindering the involvement of youth in EE of programs targeting youth. Th e fi ndings show that, on average, youth were involved in EE activities "to a small extent"or "to a moderate extent"and that a number of factors can either facilitate or hinder the involvement of youth in EE.